Book rack



'W. E. HASKIN May 9, 1939.

BOOK RACK 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 4, 1935 INVENTOR VVaz/Zerlflaskuz BY W W ATTORNE WITNESSES W. E. HASKIN May 9, 1939.

BOOK RACK 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 4, 1935 XNVENTOR WZZZ eI'EHZZQJhH ATTORNEYS WITNESSES W. E. HASKIN May 9, 1939.

BOOK BACK 4 sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Oct. 4, 1935 W. E. HASKIN May 9, 1939.

BOOK BACK 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Oct. 4, 1935 M aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa v! INVENTOR Wad Z erE li a/5X 1 I? ATTORNE% Patented May 9, 1939 UNITE STATES BOOK RACK Walter E. Haskin, Flushing", N. Y., assignor to Pressed & Welded Steel Products Company, Inc., New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application October 4, 1935, Serial No. 43,629

3 Claims. (01. 129-1) This invention relates to a book rack, and it Figure 6 is a sectional View on the line 6-45 of is to be understood that in employing the title Figure 3; book rack" it is used in its broadest sense to Figure '7 is a broken bottom plan view of the include a book cabinet, book casing or other suitinner member of a holder showing the coupling able mount for a plurality of pivotally supported means in locked position;

book holders, adapted to hold or support certain Figure 8 is a view similar to Figure '7 showing types of books, which are adapted to be moved e p g means in unlocked position;

from closed position to open position and vice F gure 9 is a broken longitudinal section of a versa. holder on the line 99 of Figure 3 showing a book 10 A object of t invention is t provide an coupled to a holder with dotted lines indicating is improved mounting for a series of books, which h p n means in unlocked p si i n. normally supports the books in closed position, y D V d bo ra k e bodies a cabinet or but enables any or all of the books to be swung rack a Series Of book holders B p vo y from a closed to open position for ready use and unted in the upp portion of the Cabinet 0 5 manipulation while in the holder and ready rerack and a Series of books C removahly e l5 movai from the holder h d ir d, nected to the book holders but having a novel My invention is adapted for use in connection an men of m t to r t of r y with entry books such, for example, as loose-leaf manipulation While in the holders ready books or binders, and, more specifically, of the mOVal therefromarcuat r n type th b k of which are In referring to part A as a cabinet or rack, it is l vid d it i along t iengitudinei center to be distinctly understood that the invention is line of the back to enable the respective sets of not limited to any form Shape Of s Cabinet, prongs to be moved laterally toward and away as this m be varied to Suit the trade, but a from each other to a art1y n or fu11 pe specific form is illustrated which is well adapted -1 lation, and vice versa, and particularly relates to for the P p that type of such binders which are constructed Referring to the Cabinet or casing s ay with flanged ends as contrasted with the ty be made of sheetv metal or any other suitable constructed ith flu h d material, and comprises ends ll connected by structurally th invention b di an front and back members 2 and 3 respectively and :13 proved cabinet or casing for the book holders and y 1he bottom Stringer 4 Wh h also acts as a books, improved means for removably couplin foot rest. In the construction herein illustrated the books to the book holders enabling the books these members are Preferably made of b gto be manipulated, without removal from the The l and upper back p rt ons of the cabinet holder, to a full-open relation of the prongs or are mainly Open to permit of he book holders :1, to a partly-open relation thereof whereby the and books being rotated about a central p vo posting of entries is facilitated and the shifting point threugh n ar o 0 Without obstrucof the prongs longitudinally of th binder can be tion or interference. The top of the cabinet has accomplished, all of which 111 b more fully what constitute end-leaves 55 for supporting hereinafter described and p int t i t the side covers of the next adjacent books when l- 1 claims. in an open position. The cabinet is preferably In t accompanying mounted on rollers or casters 6 to facilitate Figure 1 is a front perspective view of the commommy from place to placeplete assemblage; The backs of the book holders B and the endleaves 5-5 are disposed at an angle of approximately 30 from the horizontal which is a convenient angle for positioning the books when in open position so that reference or entries may be conveniently made thereto while the operator is Figure 4 1s a view in elevation of the operating in a sitting. posture although it is to be f of book holder and book Showing the book tinctly understood that the angle of disposition m position to be opened with its prongs in a fullyof the book holders may be varied as desired. Shut elation; The angular disposition of the books is effective Figure 5 iS a View Similar to Figure 4 Showing in providing sufficient leg room for an operator a book coupled to a holder, with its prongs in a in a sitting posture to manipulate the books and 5 full-open relation; make entries therein.

Figure 2 is a rear perspective view of the complete assemblage;

Figure 3 is a top plan view of a holder with the book removed;

All of the book holders B are of generally oblong, hollow, box-like form preferably made of sheet metal. They are pivotally supported on a round rod 7 which extends longitudinally through the upper portion of the cabinet and transversely through all the book holders, the pivotal connection between the book holders and the rod being slightly nearer one end of the book holders than the other, so that the preponderance of the weight of the book holder and book is at one end, specifically the upper and rear end, to insure a complete opening and closing movement due to gravity as the parts reach the extremes of their movement. The said pivot rod may be removably secured in the cabinet in any approved manner to permit of the ready assemblage of the parts and the removal and replacement of the parts as occasion may require.

The books, coupled to the said book holders, when in their normally closed position in the cabinet, rest upon a cushion 9 as illustrated in Figure l of the drawings. For this purpose is provided a supporting member 8, extending longitudinally of the cabinet between the ends l--l, upon which is mounted a cushion member 9, preferably of sheet sponge rubber, the exposed surface of which contacts the edges of the side covers of the books. When the books are in open position, the ends of the book holders rest upon the bumpers I I properly positioned on the front member 2 of the casing A to limit the rotation of the book, as illustrated in Figure l of the drawings.

All of the book holders B are identical in size and structure so that the description of one will apply equally to all. Referring to Figures 4, 5 and 6 of the drawings, it will be noted that the body of a holder comprises two main constituent parts, an outer member l2 and an inner member l3 assembled in telescopic arrangement, both members being of generally channel shaped formation. The outer member [2 has at its sides and approximately at the center longitudinally but slightly nearer one end than the other, extruded apertures l4 through which the pivot rod 7 passes and which constitute bearings on which the holder is rotated on the rod. At one end of the outer member I2 is provided a finger grip 5, as shown in Figure 9, which facilitates grasping the holder for opening and closing the book. It will be noted that the longitudinal edges of the outer member I2 are folded to an open. U shaped formation It adapted to receive and retain an intermeshing formation on the inner member l3.

The inner member [3 is formed with projecting flanges 41 adapted to enter and intermesh with the U shaped folded edges I6 above mentioned so thau the two parts l2 and I3 may be telescoped on assemblage. The member I 3 has round apertures at its sides positioned to exactly register with the extruded apertures l4 so that when the pivot rod 7 is passed through both members of the holder on assemblage they will be held securely in coupled relation. This arrangement enables the two main members of the book holder to be readily assembled or disconnected for the repair or replacement of parts by dispensing with the use of rivets or other permanent coupling means.

Referring to Figures '7, 8 and 9 of the drawings, positioned inside and at one end of the inner body member I3 is an auxiliary structure comprising a platform [8 with a depending outer end flange i9 and inner end flange 20. Mounted on the end flange 20 is a bracket 2| supporting a fixed fulcrum pin 22. A U shaped swingable operating lever 23 is arranged to fulcrum on the pin 22 and is enabled to swing from side to side by reason of the slots 24 and 24 in the end flange l9 through which it projects. Mounted on the lever 23 is an actuating pin 25 projecting through a diagonally positioned slot 26 in the platform l8 and through a similar diagonally positioned slot 2'! in an angle plate 28 mounted to slide on the platform l8. As is illustrated particularly in Figures 7 and 8 of the drawings, the diagonal slot 21 in the angle plate 28 is positioned at the opposite angle to the diagonal slot 26 in the platform I8 so that when the swinging of the lever 23 from side to side causes the pin 25 to move in the slots it exerts a cam action to cause the angle plate 28 to move forwardly or outwardly to an unlocked position or inwardly to a locked position as the case may be. It is to be especially noted that the one end of each of the diagonal a slots 26 and 2'! is developed into the reverse extensions 26 and 27 so that when the angle plate 28 is in locked position, as shown particularly in Figure 7, it will not be dislodged by reason of any end thrust exerted by the book, particularly that resulting from the impact of the book on the rubber cushion. in the operation of closing.

As illustrated in Figures 3, 4, 5, 6 and 9 of the drawings, a pair of generally curved and inwardly projecting flanges 29 are mounted in juxtaposition on the top edge of the upward extending leg of the angle plate 28. An exactly similar pair of flanges 29' are positioned on the fixed end plate 35 attached to the opposite end of the inner body member I 3.

A loose-leaf binder of the arcuate prong type with flanged ends is illustrated in Figure 9 of the drawings. In order to provide coupling means or adapters for engagement with the book holder, two pairs of notches 3| and 3| illustrated in Figures 4, 5 and 9 of the drawings, are positioned in the sides of the binder back at the respective ends thereof and in the lower corners of the end flanges 32 and 32 and are adapted to receive the flanges 29 and 29' of the holder. For the purpose of separating the prongs 33 of a binder of the type described, a hinge 34 extending longitudinally of the binder at the center of the back is provided and the hinge action is governed by integral locking means controlled by the latch 35. The side covers 36 are attached to the binder back by the hinges 37.

In the operation of the book holder the swingable operating lever 23 is swung to the position shown in Figure 8 of the drawings, thereby projecting the angle plate 28 outwardly a suflicient distance to allow clearance at one end to escape the flanges 32 of a book, as clearly indicated by the dotted lines in Figure 9 of the drawings. A

book is now entered in the holder, the notches 3| in the end flanges 32' of the book being first engaged with the flanges 29' mounted on the fixed plate 33 at the rear end of the holder, as illustrated in Figure 9. The swingable operating lever 23 is thereupon swung to the opposite hand, or to the position shown in Figure 7 of the drawings, causing the angle plate 28 to be projected inwardly or from the position shown by the dotted lines to that shown by the solid lines in Figure 9. The flanges 29 of the angle plate engage the notches 3| in theflanged forward end of the book and the book thereby becomes securely coupled to the holder and enabled to be rotated to a closed position inside the cabinet.

If it is desired to open the book for reference or posting, the side covers 36 are laid over the backs of the adjacent book holders 38 and 38 and the book is thereby supported in position for use. As is characteristic of the type of arcuate prong binders herein illustrated, there is a certain degree of what is termed roll to the leaves which is detrimental to ready posting of entries when the book is held, by its integral locking means, in the fully-shut relation of the prongs as shown in Figure 4.

To overcome this disadvantage and facilitate the posting of entries, binders of this type are provided with means to separate the prongs laterally a given distance. The arcuate prongs 33 are formed to a radius of which the longitudinal hinge 34 is the center. By releasing the locking means controlled by the latch 35, the operator is enabled to adjust the binder in the holder to an intermediate or partly-open relation of the prongs which is the preferred posting position and serves to eliminate the roll above mentioned. It is to be pointed out that in this.operation the longitudinal hinge 34 has been elevated from a position substantially in the same horizontal plane with the notches 3|, as shown in Figure 4, to a position above the plane of the said notches and that the respective notches 3| have been brought towards each other but in the same horizontal plane, the flanges 29 having been adapted to permit of such horizontal movement of the notches 3|.

Certain binders of the type described are provided with means to move one set of prongs longitudinally of the binder to efiect what is known as the shifting position and when such action is accomplished by moving one side cover 36 to which the respective set of prongs may be hingedly attached, then this shifting relation of the prongs may be readily. accomplished without removing the binder from the holder.

If it is desired to remove an account from the binder or insert one therein, by releasing the integral locking means controlled by the latch 35 the operator is enabled to further adjust the binder in the holder to a full-open relation of the prongs, as particularly illustrated in Figure of the drawings. It is to be noted that the side covers 36 of the binder are resting upon and are supported by the backs of the adjacent book holders 38 and 38'. By grasping the prongs 33 and exerting an upward pull thereon, the operator is enabled to create a gap between the ends of the respective sets of prongs so that the account may be removed or inserted. In this operation the hinges 31 act as pivots about which the two sections of the back of the binder are rotated. It will be clearly seen that the longitudinal hinge 34 has been elevated still further in a vertical plane and that the notches 3| havelikewise been elevated and drawn obliquely through an are still further towards each other than in the half-open relation of the prongs, the curved section of the flanges 29 and 29' having been adapted to permit of such obliquely upward and converging movement of the notches 3|. It is to be especiallypointed out that the flanges 29 and 29' terminate at their upper ends in a small horizontal extension 39 and 39' as clearly shown in Figures 4, 5 and 6 of the drawings. As is particularly shown in Figure 5, these extensions 39 overlap the notches 3| at the extremes of their movement and prevent further movement of the notches 3| and their consequent disengagement with the flanges 29.

If it is desired to restore the book to its normally closed position in the cabinet, the operator grasps and raises the side covers 36. This movement of the side covers restores the binder to a fully-shut relation of the prongs, as shown in Figure 4, so that the holder can thereupon be rotated on its pivot and the book returned to the cabinet.

While I have illustrated what I believe to be the preferred embodiment of my invention, it is obvious that various changes may be made in the general form and arrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit of the invention; hence I do not limit myself to the specific details set forth but consider myself at liberty to make such changes and alterations as fairly fall within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A device of the character described, including a holder, a visible loose leaf binder of the rcuate prong type with longitudinal center hinge and flanged ends projecting beyond the body of the back, a pair of notches positioned in each of the said flanged ends, plates at the ends of the holder one of which is movable, a pair of inwardly projecting curved flanges mounted on the said plates engaging the notches at the ends of the binder, the said flanges being adapted to permit the necessary movement of the notches thereon for moving the respective sets of prongs of the binder toward or away from each other and flange extensions overlapping the said notches at one extreme of their movement to prevent disengagement of the binder from the holder.

2. A book rack, including a book holder, a book with flanged ends projecting beyond the body of the back, a pair of notches positioned in each of the said flanged ends, inwardly projecting stationary coupling means on one end of the book holder engaging the said notches at one end of the book, and movable inwardly projecting coupling means on the other end of the book holder engaging the said notches at the other end of the book, said notches having a limited movement in the coupling means to permit opening and closing of the book without disengagement from the book holder.

3. In a book rack, a book holder, a fixed flange at one end of the book holder, a movable flange bearing element at the other end of the book holder, a pivoted locking lever on the book holder having cam engagement with the said movable flange bearing element for reciprocal movement of the said element, longitudinally of the holder and for locking the same in coupling position, a loose leaf binder of the arcuate prong type with longitudinal center hinge and flanged ends projecting beyond the body of the back, a pair of notches positioned in each of the said flanged ends, said flanges on the book holder engaging the said notches to couple the binder to the book holder and permit of the necessary movement of the notches thereon whereby when the said locking lever is actuated to couple and lock the binder I to the holder the binder may be manipulated to separate the prongs by movement of the hinged back while in its coupled relation to the holder.

WAL'I'ER E. HASKIN. 

